Sunday, November 25, 2012

SHOCKING CASE OF MISCARRIAGE OF JUSTICE

B.RAMAN

Instances of miscarriage of justice are many in
India. Sometimes, such instances arise due to gross negligence by the police in
the investigation. Sometimes, due to wanton fabrication of evidence and
violation of the legal procedures to be followed during the investigation.

2. Such instances continue to take place and even
increase in number because of the lack of fear in the police officers thataction might be taken against them for
miscarriages of justice caused by negligence or mala fide actions or inaction.

3. There has been a worrisome increase in the
number of such cases ever since terrorism made its appearance in the early 1980s.Calls
for ruthless action against terrorists and zero tolerance of terrorism have
unfortunately created an impression in the minds of sections of police officers
that any methods are good methods for dealing with terrorists and terrorism. Political
tolerance of the use of illegal methods in dealing with terrorists has added to
the belief that the police can take liberties with the law and procedures while
dealing with terrorism.

4.One has to be firm and ruthless under the law in
dealing with terrorists, but one cannot go beyond the law in dealing with them.
One has to use the might of the law against them, but one cannot use illegal
methods and procedures during the investigation. Use of such methods and
procedures prove counter-productive.

5. Since many of the acts of terrorism committed in
India are by jihadis, innocent Muslims have often been the victims of mala fide
investigation. Instead of controlling terrorism, it aggravates it by adding to
the anger in the Muslim community against the police and other investigating
agencies. It becomes a vicious circle. The more illegal the methods used by the
police, the more the terrorism. The more the terrorism, the more illegal the methods
used by the police.

6.A shocking instance of such wrongful action and
miscarriage of justice has been brought to notice after 16 years by a Division
Bench of Delhi consisting of Justice Ravindra Bhatand Justice G.P.Mittal. In a judgement
delivered on November 22,2012, it has acquitted two Muslim convicts who had
been awarded death penalty by the trial court in a case relating to an
explosion in the Lajpat Nagar Market of New Delhi in 1996 in which 13 persons
were killed. Another convict’s sentence was reduced to life term.

7.It is a horrendous case because if the court had
not noticed the wanton miscarriage of justice by the police, three persons
might have been executed by the State on the basis of evidence of questionable
value and authenticity. It was not a case of the police unconsciously using
such evidence, but wantonly using such evidence in full knowledge of its lack
of authenticity in order to obtain a conviction.

8. The judgement has said:"Police have not maintained minimum
standard of probe in the case, test identification parade (TIP) was not
conducted, statements of vital witnesses were not recorded. There was also
absence of (police) daily diary entry in the case." The court has observed
that there was casualness in the investigation of the case.

9. While we have taken many steps to improve the
quality of intelligence collection and physical security, we have not succeeded
in improving the quality of investigation. This has had two results. Firstly,
an increasing number of undetected cases. Secondly, instances of the use of
wrongful methods and miscarriage of justice in cases which are claimed to have
been successfully detected.

10. After the 26/11 terrorist strikes in Mumbai,
the Government had set up the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to improve
the quality of investigation. Despite this, the number of undetected cases has
been increasing. This judgement has drawn our attention to a serious case of
miscarriage of justice due to bad investigation in the year 1996---- sixteen
years later. One does not know how many more such instances remain unnoticed or
undetectedduring the prosecution and
trial.

11. It is important for the Government to go into
this and take corrective action to prevent a recurrence of such instances.
There is a need to improve not only the quality of the investigation, but also
the quality of the supervision over the investigation by senior officers. (
25-11-12)

2 comments:

Sir, there is a need for urgent police reforms and even reforms in trial court judges.

At present, even if a lawyer tried to present a case of an accussed in a terrorism case who happens to be a muslims, bar associations are calling for boycotts and revoking of license of such lawyers. This is a case of not only guilty until proven innocent but also of not even allowing the accused to stand a fair trial.The other problem is with the media which reports on "leaks" provided to them where innocents have lost their entire career and lives because of wrongful reporting by media.

Reforms in the bar associations, courts, media and police is necessary to provide justice to innocents in accussed cases and at the same punish those who are actually guilty

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